The Novelty of Popery Opposed to the Antiquity of True Christianity, Book 7 · Controversy 4 · Chapter 2
CHAP. II. Of affected auſterity, Reaſons whereby the Cardinal maintaineth profeſſed ſlovenlineſs. The Original of Monks.
HIs Majeſty of Great Britain had commended modeſty in clothes, and ſobriety of dyet, in thoſe eſpecially that teach others, and ſhew them the way to live well. But he believed not that a man is holy, becauſe he is ſlovenly, or that if lice get up into the Pulpit with the Preacher, his Preaching is the more effectual for that. He believed not that Scab and Vermine are meritorious before God, or that a man is the more acceptable unto God for going barefoot. He condemned thoſe that whip themſelves for themſelves, and more yet, ſuch as whip themſelves for others. Only, he held that by whipping themſelves they do juſtly, for being ſo ſenſleſs, as to think to ſatisfie God with outward geſtures, not knowing that God requires not that we tear our bodies with cruel handling, but that we turn our hearts with repentance; and not conſidering that it is the part of a mad Judge, to releaſe a Felon, becauſe his neighbour hath whipt himſelf for him. Such Penitents are ſeen at Rome in great troops, the week before Eaſter, whipping themſelves in publick, with their face hid, and their back bare; others bearing a Croſs of great weight in the ſtreets, crying, Fate ben per voi; that is, Do good for your ſelves. Beatus Rhenanus, in his Comment upon the Book of Tertullian, Ad Martyres, ſaith that(a)Iſtius veteris diamaſtigoſeos veſtigium aliquod videas apud Italos in Litaniis. in Italy in the Letanies, ſome reſemblance or trace was ſeen of the old cuſtom of the Lacedemonians to whip themſelves. Of this,(b)Lib. 7. de Inventoribus rerum, cap. 6. Polydorus Virgilius ſpeaks in this manner. In publick they march in order, having moſt of them their face covered with linnen ſacks, chaſtening themſelves with a whip, having their back bare and torn, as it is convenient unto true penitents. Then he addeth,(c)Caeterum res iſta fidem facit à Romanis Lupercis inſtitutum eſſe acceptum, quod illi Lupercalia ludicra celebrantes nudi per urbem incedebant & larvati flagellis obvios caedebant. This ſheweth that this cuſtom proceeded from the Luperci of the old Rome: For when they celebrated the Lupercal games, they went naked and masked through the town, and ſmote with whips ſuch as they met in their way.
I am not ignorant that ſuch an auſtere life, that horrour, thoſe ſtripes, that ſlovenlineſs and ſordid habit, bears ſome ſhew of humility, and ſtudy to mortifie the fleſh. But the Apoſtle, Col. 2.23. warneth us againſt that ſhew. For condemning the exteriour abſtinences and auſterities, he ſaith, Which things have indeed a ſhew of wiſdom in will-worſhip, and humility, and neglecting of the body, not in any honour to the ſatisfying of the fleſh. For pride will neſtle even in dunghills, and many will bring themſelves low, that they may exalt themſelves. The world honours them, becauſe they deſpiſe themſelves, and by humility they get glory and reputation among men. Some out of an affected humility, weare a torn garment, but their pride is ſeen through the holes of their Cloak. Had they lived a life like other men, no body had ſpoken of them, and they had not been diſcerned in the multitude. But a man that leaveth the croud, to take a way by himſelf, is ſooner taken notice of.
Truly it is a great miſtake of holineſs, to place it in things which God hath not commanded, and the Apoſtles have not practiſed, and which may be done out of hypocriſie, and wherein the Pagans have alwayes out-done the Chriſtians. For the moſt auſtere among the Chriſtians, come not near the(d)1 King. 18.28. Prieſts of Baal that lanched their fleſh with knives, for the ſervice of the Idol. The Dervis of the Mahumetans, and the Bramenies of the Eaſt-Indies, go far beyond the auſterity of Fryars.
Sure they that will pay God in ſuch light coyn, fancy to themſelves a blind God, and offer an high wrong unto Chriſt, when they preſent other ſatisfactions for ſins unto God, then the paſſion of his only Son.
To theſe things, of which the Cardinal was not ignorant, he giveth a very ſuperficial anſwer.(e)In the ſecond Obſervation, chap. 10. & 12. pag. 663. & 665. He ſaith that Elijah and other holy men were clad with ſheepskins. That John the Baptiſt was clad with Camels hair. That Ambroſe and Tertullian ſpeak of the dirt arid naſtineſs of the penitent. That Saint Simeon Stelites ſuffered his legs to be eaten with(f)In Latine Cimices, a vermine well known in Paris, and in hot Countries, but unknown in England. puneſes, when he could take them away. That Saint Hierom clad himſelf with a ſack, and that his skin was of the colour of a tawney-Moore. That he would ſmite his breaſt with a ſtone till the blood came. That he ſaith upon the 35. Pſalm, that ſackcloth and aſhes are the weapons of penitence, and that Epiphanius ſaith the ſame. As for the madneſs of thoſe that whip themſelves for others, after he hath praiſed the Kings gallant wit, and what a grace he hath to make the Reader laugh, and having compared him, uncivilly enough, to a Stage-player, to whom it is more eaſie to make the beholders laugh, then to make them weep; he anſwereth, that he knoweth not thoſe that thus cauſe themſelves to be whipt, and that as they gave him no proxie to imitate them, neither did they give him any to defend them. He denyeth not that there are ſuch men, but he ſaith that he knows them not, and that he would not follow their example.
For anſwer, I ſay, that we condemn not vermine and dirt, as things contrary to Gods command. Many Martyres ſhut up in Dungeons, have been brought to that condition: Or if Penitence and the contempt of the world, make a man ſo far to neglect his body, as to forget cleanlineſs and decency, God forbid that we ſhould therefore condemn him. Only we condemn thoſe that do theſe things, that they may be ſeen,Mat. 6.17. not remembring the Lords command, When thou faſteſt, waſh thy face, that it may not appear unto men that thou faſteſt, but to thy Father that ſeeth thee in ſecret. We condemn alſo thoſe, that put merit in theſe auſterities, and preſume thereby to ſatisfie God, either for theirs, or for their neighbours ſins. Wherefore we can hardly be perſwaded to praiſe Saint Batheus, (g)Sozom. lib. 6. ſect. 34.who was of ſuch a mortified holineſs, that he ſuffered worms to run between his teeth, as Sozomenus relateth. Or Saint Francis, who to obey Pope Honorius, wallowed in the mire. Or that Simeon Stelites, of whom the Cardinal ſaith, that he ſuffered vermine to eat his legs.
Antiquity hath much admired two Simeon Stelites, ſo called from ſtele, a pillar, becauſe they ſtood upon pillars. The firſt of them lived under the Emperour Theodoſius the II. who died in the year of the Lord, 449. Of that Simeon the Hiſtorian, Evagrius ſaith, in his firſt Book, chap. 13. that for the ſpace of thirty years, he ſtood on the top of a pillar forty cubits high, with an iron chain about his neck. The other Simeon, who came ſoon after, went beyond the other, for he lived 68. years at rooſt upon a pillar, and counterfeited himſelf to be mad for the love of Chriſt, and ſhut up himſelf many hours with a whore, as the ſame Evagrius relates.(h)Evagr. l. 4. c. 33. Solus cum ſola diu commoratus eſt, & lib. 6. cap. 22. That is the Saint whom the Cardinal propounds for an example, who ſuffered his legs to be eaten by vermine, when he could hinder it. The Cardinals legs were little better, but that came not to him by auſterity.(i)But by voluptuouſneſs, which got him a body tormented with Venerean diſeaſes, if the world ſaith true.
The hiſtory of that age affords many the like examples. Socrates in the fourth Book, chap. 18. ſaith that Saint Macarius commanded a Monk in his ſore thirſt to content himſelf with the ſhadow of a tree, and that he would ſleep ſtanding, leaning againſt a wall. His Legend ſaith, that he did ſtrict penance for ſix Moneths for killing a Gnat. Sozomen in the ſixth Book, chap. 28. ſaith the Monck Theonas was thirty years without ſpeaking. And in chap. 29. he ſaith, that the Monck Pior kept his eyes ſhut continually, and would ſee no body, and could not be perſwaded to open them to ſee his ſiſter, which he had not ſeen in fifty years. The auſterity of the Apoſtles, never came near thoſe examples.
The firſt Author of thoſe abſtinences and auſterities, was Anthony the Hermite, who died in the year of Chriſt, 358. For Paul the Hermite, dead a little before him, made no Diſciples. Auſtin in the firſt Book of the Chriſtian Doctrine, ſaith of that Anthony, that he had learned the Holy Scriptures only by hearing, for he could not read. Yet at Saint Anthony's Church near Paris, his image ſtands with a Book in his hand, and a hogg by his ſide. We have his life among the works of Athanaſius, which ſaith that he was cruelly whipt by a troop of Devils. That he made grave and mild admonitions unto Aſſes and other beaſts, that ate the herbs of his Garden: And that this holy man fore-told that the Hereſie of Arrius ſhould be the laſt, and that after it there would be no more in the world. In the ſame life there are many expreſs Declarations againſt Invocation of Saints, and Adoration of relicks.
That Anthony left Diſciples, who built with their own hands every one his own Cottage. In leſs then fifty years their number did ſo increaſe, that the Deſarts of Syria and Egypt were full of Cottages, where thoſe Hermites or Moncks lived, who got their living by their labour, came not to Towns but to ſell their work, begged not, were not bound by any neceſſity of vow,(k)Polydor. Virg. de Invent. lib. 7. cap. 1. Nullum votorum vinculum, ita ut unicuique integrum ſoret manere aut proficiſci quò terrarum vellet. asked no approbation of the Biſhop of Rome of their Order, and received no Indulgences from him.
Their garment was black and courſe, their faſts were auſtere, yet(l)Caſſian. lib. 5. c. 5. Super jejuniorum modo haud poteſt uniformis regula cuſtodiri, quia nec robur unum cunctis corporibus ineſt. unequal, and according to every mans ſtrength. They held it a great crime to faſt upon a(m)Caſſian. l. 3. c. 9. & 10. Condemneth the Roman Church for faſting upon Saturday. Saturday, or upon the Lords day. They wore a hood like a childs beggin, becauſe (ſaith Caſſian, in the firſt book, chap. 4.) it is written in the Pſalm, I was as a child that is weaned of his Mother; and becauſe Chriſt ſaid, Ʋnleſs you be like little children, you ſhall not enter into the Kingdom of heaven. They carried(o)Idem. lib 1. c. 9. Baculus quo abigunt canes vitiorum. a ſtaff in imitation of Eliſha, to beat dogs away, that is, vices. They wore ſtockins, but no ſhoes,(p)Idem lib. 1. c. 10. for fear of touching dead things. Entring into the place of Prayer, they put off their ſtockins, becauſe it is written, Put off thy ſhoes, for the place where thou ſtandeſt is holy ground. In ſome places they wore long hair, as in Meſopotamia, in other places they wore it ſhort, but not ſhaven round, becauſe of the prohibition, Levit. 19.27. They celebrated Chriſts Nativity upon the day of Epiphany, which is the ſixth of January. (q)Idem Collat. 10. cap. 2.Which was alſo the cuſtom of the whole Patriarchat of Alexandria, a certain proof that they were not ſubject to the Biſhop of Rome. Breaking an earthen pot, was held a great crime among them, or touching any mans hand. Caſſian in the fourth book chap. 10. ſaith that they obſerved ſuch a rigour of diſcipline, that they durſt not ſo much as piſs without leave, not take up a fruit faln from a tree, and that for letting fall three ſeeds of Lentills, they did publick penance. That the Monck Mucius being commanded by his Abbot to drown his ſon, carried him immediately to the River, and would have drowned him, had he not been hindred,(r)Caſſian. lib. 4. c. 18. & 20. as Caſsian relateth.
That Caſsian, who writ about the year 440. and lived long among them, ſaith, that commonly they were(ſ)Idem Collat 7. beaten by Devils moſt horribly: And that among them, the Abbot Moſes was eminent in holineſs, into whoſe mouth the Devil would thruſt humane excrements. Alſo,(t)Idem Collat. 22. c. 2. & 3. & 5. & 6. that Satan by contrectation, would cauſe unto them nocturnal pollutions, after which they did not forbear receiving the Sacrament of the Lords Supper, becauſe it was the Devils doing, not theirs.
The ſame Moncks were generally Anthropomorphites, as(u)Sozom. lib. 8. c 11. & Caſſian. Collat. 10. cap. 2. & 3. Sozomenus and Caſsian witneſs. See alſo about their errours, the firſt book of the hiſtory of Theodoret, chap. 9. Cyrillus of Alexandria made uſe of them as of ſouldiers. He ſent for five hundred of them out of the Deſart of Nittia, into the City of Alexandria, to ſtand againſt the Emperours Lieutenant Oreſtes, whom they charged with ſtones, and wounded him in the face. Thus, ſcarce was that profeſſion come into the world, but preſently many errours and exceſſes crept into it.
About the year 380. at the inſtigation of Saint Hierom, a woman named Marcella, and at her imitation ſome noble women and virgins of Rome began to embrace the Monaſtical vow, not living in a Monaſtery, for there was none yet at Rome, but living at home, and wearing a courſe black habit; Which new way diſpleaſed very much the Chriſtian people of Rome, as Hierom ſaith in the Epitaph of Marcella, (x)Nulla eo tempore nobilium ſoeminarum noverat Romae propoſitum Monachorum, nec audebat, propter rei novitatem, ignominioſum (ut tum putabatur) & vile in populis nomen aſſumere.None of the Noble-women knew yet at Rome, what the Monaſtical profeſsion was, and durſt not take that name which was vile and opprobrious among the people, becauſe of the novelty of the thing, as they eſteemed it at that time. And when it happened that Bleſilla daughter to Paula dyed out of exceſs of monaſtical auſterity, the people cryed at her funerals,(y)Quouſque genus deteſtabile manachorum non urbe pellitur? non lapidibus obruitur? non praecipitatur in ſtuctus? Matronam miſerabilē ſeduxerunt, &c. How long ſhall it be before that deteſtable generation of Monks be expelled out of the City? why are they not ſtoned to death? Why are they not caſt into the water? They have ſeduced a miſerable Matron, &c. Theſe expoſtulations regarded Hierom, the great promoter of Monaſtical profeſſion at Rome, who drew as many as he could into it, rich women eſpecially, to whom he writ moſt part of his Epiſtles. And yet himſelf in many Epiſtles deteſteth the life of many Monks, and the corruption crept into that profeſſion, though it was of very late birth. In the Epiſtle to Ruſticus he ſpeaks thus,(z)Q…oſdam ineptos homines Monachos demonum contra ſe pugnantium portenta confingere ut apud imperitos & vulgi homines miraculum ſui faciant & exinde lucra ſectentur. Some fooliſh Monks forge prodigies of devils fighting againſt them, to make themſelves admired of the ignorant vulgar people, and thereby to get profit. And in the ſame place he ſaith that,(a)Sunt qui humore cellarum, immoderatiſque jejumis, taedio ſolitudinis ac nimia lectione vertantur in melancholiam, &c. he hath ſeen many, who by the dampneſs of their cells, and by exceſſive faſting, and by a long ſolitarineſs, and by too much reading, were become melancholy and mad, and had more need of the help of Hippocrates, then of his [that is, Hieroms] admonitions. And in the Epiſtle to Euſtochium, (b)Sunt qui ciliciis veſtiuntur & cucullis fabrefactis, ut ad infantiam redeant imitantur noctuas & bubo nes, &c. Viros quoque fuge quos videris catenatos, quibus foeminei contra Apoſtolum crines, hircorum barba, nigrum pallium, &cThere are ſome, who having made to themſelves a hair cloth, and a frock [like a beggin] to return to infancy, are like owles. And that I may not ſeem to speak only of women, avoid thoſe men alſo whom thou ſhalt ſee with chains, wearing long hair like women, againſt the commandment of the Apoſtle, a goats beard, and a black cloak, going with bare feet hardned againſt the cold. Theſe are marks of the Devil.
Auſtin about the year 420. writ the book of the work of Monks, where he ſpeaks to Monks as unto tradeſmen labouring with their hands. And complaining of the impoſture of the Monks of his time, he ſaith,(c)Callidiſſimus hoſtis tam multos hypocritas ſub habitu monachorum uſquequaque diſperſit. the crafty enemy hath spread abroad every where ſo many hypocrites under the habit of Monks. Among whom he ſaith that there were ſome that carried about relicks of Martyrs, which were ſuſpect unto him;(d)Venditant membra Martyrum, ſi tamen Martyrum. Others (ſaith he) muſter up ſome limbs of Martyrs, if yet they be truly of Martyrs.
By theſe examples it is made evident, that auſterity and naſtineſs are not alwayes proofs of holineſs. As for Hierom, who lay naked upon the hard ground, and beat his breaſt, as he ſaith in the Epiſtle to Euſtochium, we will relate his own words, That man is held happy, who as ſoon as he begins to think on filthy things, killeth thoſe thoughts, and bruiſeth them againſt the ſtones. (e)O quoties ego ipſe in eremo conſtitutus & in illa vaſta ſolitudine quae exuſta Solis ardoribus horridum Monachis praebet habitaculum, putabam me Romanis intereſſe deliciis! Sedebam ſolus quia amaritudine repletus eram. Horrebant ſacco membra deformia & ſquallida cutis ſitum. Aethiopicae carnis obduxerat. Quotidie lachrimae, quotidie gemitus, & ſi quando repugnantem ſomnus imminens oppreſſiſſet nuda humo vix oſſa haerentia collidebam, &c. Ille igitur ego qui ob gehennae metum tali me carcere ipſe damnaveram, ſcorpionum tantum ſocius & ferarum, ſaepe choris puellarum intereram Pallebant ora jejuniis, & mens deſideriis aeſtuabat; in frigido corpore, & ante hominem ſuum jam carne praemortua, ſola libidinum incendia bulliebant.Oh how many times, my ſelf being in the deſart, in that waſt ſolitude, which being ſcorched with the Suns heat, giveth an horrible habitation unto the Monks, did I imagine that I was among the dainties of Rome! I was ſitting alone, becauſe I was full of bitterneſs: My ugly limbs were covered with a baſe ſackcloth, and my dirty skin had got the mouldineſs of a tawny-Moors fleſh. Every day I wept. Every day I groaned. And if ſometimes ſleep overcame me againſt my will, I knockt, with a hard fall, my bones, which hardly held together, againſt the bare ground. Then he addeth, I then who for fear of hell had condemned my ſelf to ſuch a priſon, being company only for Scorpions and wild beaſts, found my ſelf many times among the dances of virgins. My face was pale with faſting, and yet in my cold body my spirit burnt with luſt; and the fleſh being dead already before the man, the only burnings of unchaſt deſires boyled up in it. And a little after, I remember that I joyned the day with the night, crying, beating my breaſt without ceaſing, till the Lord chiding me, tranquillity returned to me.
This place is often*Pag. 664. alleadged by Cardinal du Perron, not very faithfully tranſlated, to defend auſterity, beating of ones ſelf, dirt, and naſtineſs. And he adds ſomething of his own: For Hierom ſaith not, that he beat his breaſt with a ſtone till the blood came. And as for Hierom, ſince he was writing to a woman, in my opinion he might have ſpared confeſſing to her, that among his auſterities, his heart was burning with luſt, and that his imagination tranſported him among the dances of Virgins. But this is an evidence that one grain of the fear of God is better worth then a ſtone weight of monaſtical exerciſe, as St. Paul ſaith, 1 Tim. 4.8. that bodily exerciſe profiteth little, but godlineſs is profitable unto all things, having promiſe of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.
Beſides, we know not whether we muſt receive this relation of Hierom as a true ſtory, or for a rhetorical licence amplifying the matter. For in the ſame Epiſtle we have a narrative of the ſame kind; Where he ſaith, that it had been his cuſtom after his faſting, watching, and weeping, to take Tully or Plautus in his hand; for which he was once carried before the throne of Chriſt, and that being asked, Who he was? he anſwered, I am a Chriſtian: But it was anſwered him, Thou lieſt, thou art a Ciceronian; and that for being a Ciceronian he was ſoundly whipt before the throne of Chriſt. And that one might not think that it was an illuſion, he ſweareth,(f)Teſtis eſt t…ibunal illud ante quod jacui; teſtis judicium triſte quod timui (ita mihi nunquam contingat in talem incidere quaeſtionem) liventes habuiſſe ſcapulas, plagas ſenſiſſe poſt ſomnum. and takes God to witneſs that his ſhoulders were black and blew after he was awake. I take to witneſs (ſaith he) that judicial throne before which I lay down, I take to witneſs that ſad Judgement which I did fear (ſo may I never fall into the like examination again) that my ſhoulders were black with the ſtripes, and that I felt the blows after my ſleep.
After that, who will not believe that Hierom ſpake in earneſt, and that ſuch a paſſage truly happened to him? Yet himſelf towards the end of his firſt Apology againſt Ruffinus, who objected to him, that after he had been ſo whipt, yet he continued to be a Ciceronian, anſwereth that(g)Sed tamen qui ſomnium criminatur, audiat prophetarum voces ſomniis non eſſe credendum. all that was but a dream, which muſt not be believed, no more then when it happened to him often to dream that he was dead, or that he was flying, or when a man dreaming that he is rich, awaketh, and finds himſelf a beggar. In a word, he ſpeaks of that whipping, as of a meer illuſion. O God, how holy and precious is thy word, in compariſon of the word of men, and the writings of thoſe who under the name of Fathers cover great infirmities!
But to return to the Cardinal, who hath nothing but Fathers in his mouth, and leaveth the word of God, he was not bold enough to deny that in the Roman Church they whip themſelves the one for the other. But ſpeaking in ambiguous terms, he ſaith, Of men of that kind that whip themſelves for others, none as yet is come to my knowledge, and as they gave me no proxie to imitate them, they gave me none to defend them. Could he have denyed that ſuch a thing is done in his Church, he would have done it with all his heart. But the truth of that is too notorious. The Roman Church teacheth that a man can make ſuperabounding and ſupererrogatory ſatisfactions; Of that overplus the treaſure of the Church is made up, of which the Pope carrieth the keyes, and turns it into a payment for others. To that end the brotherhoods of the Cordon, and of the Roſary, and the like, are erected; Into which all that enter have part in the merits, labours, faſtings, and beatings of thoſe that belong to the ſame brotherhood, although they have ſuffered nothing in their own perſons. Here is then a treaſure, part whereof conſiſteth in laſhes of whips, and the Treaſurer is he that calls himſelf God on earth.
St. Antonine Archbiſhop of Florence writ the life of St. Dominick, whom he compares in holineſs and miracles with Chriſt, and finds very little difference between them. He writ alſo the life of St. Catherine of Siena whom he clotheth with a holineſs almoſt beyond all example. So that even when ſhe was in her ſwadling clothes, it was not poſſible to make her ſuck upon Friday. Of theſe two he ſaith that they whipt themſelves upon their bare fleſh with iron chains. To ſay that it was for their own ſins, would be too great a derogation to their holineſs. It was then to ſatisfie for others. But as for St. Francis who when he whipt himſelf naked, would ſay, Euge frater aſine, Go to thou brother aſſe, as his Legend ſaith, he did it to lay down the boyling of his luſt. Of theſe ſuperabounding ſatisfactions Bellarmin diſputeth at large,(h)Bellar. Indulgent. lib. 1. cap. 2. & 3. Sect. Prima. Satisfactiones Chriſto & Sanctis ſupervacuae, appl… cari poſſunt aliis qui rei ſunt luendae poenae temporalis. and maintains that the ſatisfactions of Chriſt and the Saints, which are ſuperfluous unto them, may be applyed unto others that are lyable to temporal pains, among which is Purgatory. Alſo a private man may ſatisfie for another, by faſting and ſuffering corporal pains. As it is ſaid in the Canon Animae, Cauſa 13. Quaeſt. 2.(i)Animae deſunctorum quatuor modis ſolvuntur, aut oblationibus ſacerdotum, aut precibus ſanctorum, aut charorum eleemoſynis, aut jejunio cognatorum. Sicut jejunium alicujus liberat mortuum, multo potius alterius jejunium prodeſt vivo. Quod concedo ſi ille eſt vicine conjunctus illi. Vid. Diſt. 7.82. Can. Presbyter in Gloſſa. The ſouls of the dead are releaſed four wayes, By the oblations of the Prieſts, or by the prayers of the Saints, or by alms of friends, or by faſtings of kinſmen. He that ſpeaks this is Pope Gregory the firſt, who hath forgotten the interceſſion of Chriſt making requeſt for us, ſitting at the right hand of God, Rom. 8.33. It ſeems that the Roman Church may more eaſily be without that, then without other helps. The Gloſs addeth (k) If the faſt of a [living] man delivereth a dead man, much more ſhall the faſt of another profit to the living man. Which I grant, if he be his neighbour.
Pope Nicolas in the ſixth book of the Decretals in the twelfth Title, in the Chapter Exiit, teacheth that to live a perfect life, a man muſt have no proper goods. St. Francis hath obſerved that, and bound the Franciſcans to it. Againſt that rule that Pope moveth an objection, which is Chriſts example, who had a purſe, and ſome proper goods. To which he anſwereth, that Chriſt had his ininfirmities, Egit etiam infirma, ſicut interdum & in fuga patet & in loculis. That is, Chriſt alſo had infirm actions, as it appears in that he fled away; and that he had a purſe. In theſe things he attained not to the perfection of St. Francis. Yet I know not where that Pope found that Chriſt fled.